Giving Compass' Take:

· Tom Vander Ark analyzes how applying the four essential questions in professional learning communities can engage students and personalize learning.

· How can the 4 PLC questions advance personalized learning efforts? How do they engage students? 

· Read about seven essential questions leaders must answer in order to move forward with personalized learning.

Tim Stuart is a big fan of professional learning communities (PLC). As a teacher leader, he’s used them to improve schools in New Mexico, Jakarta, Singapore and Ethiopia.

Popularized by Rick DuFour, the four critical questions of a PLC include:

  1. What do we want all students to know and be able to do?
  2. How will we know if they learn it?
  3. How will we respond when some students do not learn?
  4. How will we extend the learning for students who are already proficient?

While leading innovation at the Singapore American School (see case study), Stuart had the chance to visit more than 100 of the best schools in the world. The schools that had excellent outcomes and progressive design shared three characteristics:

  • They all have characteristics of high functioning PLC (even if they don’t use that term)
  • They focus on essential disciplinary knowledge: incorporate transdisciplinary, future-ready skills; and cultivate student-agency behaviors.
  • They teach students how to personalize their learning process.

Read the full article about using the 4 PLC questions by Tom Vander Ark at Getting Smart.